EPAF - Frequently Asked Questions

(note: For FAQ about Substitute EPAFs, scroll down....)

When Are EPAFs Due?

Your approving manager must approve the EPAF before PCC Payroll's deadline for submitting job authorizations. Click here to see the Payroll deadline dates for each biweekly pay period. If the EPAF is approved after the date listed for that payroll period, it will
wait until the next pay period.

How Can I Get Information about EPAFs I Have
Created
?

A Banner report called NWREPRV gives you details about your past and present EPAFs, including which are pending approval, waiting for your action, or completed.

Another way to see if an EPAF has been approved by all parties is to access the EPAF Originator Summary section of MyPCC's BanWeb (Employee Services Menu) and click on the "History" tab. From the History tab you can view all past EPAFs. Click on the name associated with one of the EPAFs listed and scroll down to view information about who has approved the EPAF, who has the EPAF still waiting in their queue, etc.

How Do I Find Out What STEP a Faculty Member Has Attained?

What About Faculty Chair Pay and Special Pay Rates?

Use the MAP form (Miscellaneous Authorization for Pay Form) for Faculty Chair Pay and special pay rate exceptions which fall outside the usual rate for that job type.

I'm a Manager and I Need to be able to approve EPAFs. How do I get this permission?

We have a short, required online "EPAF Approval Training" for managers who need to be set up as EPAF Approval. To get EPAF Approval Training, email Tom Gerhardt. Once you have successfully completed this short training, HR will set you up as an EPAF Approvals.

I'm an Employee and I Need to be able to create EPAFs. How do I get this permission?

We offer both in-person and online training for employees who need to create (originate) EPAFs. For more information, email the TSS Training Team at training@pcc.edu, or just fill out our TSS Training Request Form.

I Get an Error Message When I'm Working in Banner Now: "You have Electronic Approvals Transactions." What Should I Do?

Can I Look Over EPAFs that Someone Else Has Created Before My Manager Has to Approve Them?

Yes. You can get set up as an "FYI." Once the EPAF creator (Originator) sets you up as an FYI in their Approval Queue, then you will be able to view their EPAFs and acknowledge that they are correct. The manager can then view the EPAF and see that you have "acknowledged" that it's OK.

Before the EPAF originator can indicate you as an FYI, they must first contact Dawn Hoyt in Human Resources to get added to the list.

How Do I Create an EPAF for an Employee Returning After a Long Absence?

If the former employee has been away for more than several terms, there is a good chance that their Employee Record has been deactivated. Go to the Banner form PEAEMPL (or ask a co-worker with this level of access) to see. If their employee status is not listed as "active," follow these preliminary steps: http://www.pcc.edu/hr/compensation/epaf/new-employee.html

I Got the Following Error Message -- What Do I Do?

Here are two common error messages and what to do about them:

The most common reason you may see this message is that another EPAF-creator somewhere in the college has been started but not completed and submitted -- an EPAF for the same employee under the same Approval Type.
Often the original user created the EPAF but received error messages that were never resolved.

The solution is for the first EPAF-creator to delete their original, incomplete EPAF. Other users will not be able to create an EPAF for this employee (which is required to get them paid) until the unresolved EPAF is deleted. To delete an EPAF in Waiting status, go to "EPAF Originator Summary", click on the name associated with the EPAF you want to delete, then press the "Delete" button.

The above error message appears if an EPAF has been started for an employee who had not held a job at PCC before (or is returning after a long absence) and the "Contract Type" field was left as "Secondary." If you get this error message, change the "Contract Type" field to Primary and save your work.

If you have additional questions about the EPAF process, please contact your HRIS Specialist.

FAQ's About Substitute EPAFs

How do I Decide Which Type of Sub Pay EPAF to Create?

When you start to create a Substitute Pay EPAF, you will notice that there are two types to choose from:

Sub Pay EPAF replacing Faculty NOT on Sick Leave

Sub Pay EPAF replacing Faculty ON Sick Leave

If you have been made aware that the instructor who was absent has declared and been approved to use Sick Leave, use the "ON Sick Leave" EPAF type.

Information on how instructors can accrue and use sick leave is in Article 19.22 in the Faculty Contract. To confirm that an instructor has sick leave available, you can contact Payroll or check the 'current available' column in the Banner form PEALEAV (leave code "SICK").

If I Chose "CALC" for the Grade, how do I Calculate the Pay Rate?

Here's how you can calculate the pay rate. First, get information about your course's lecture / lab hours by running the Banner report SWRCRPA. Apply these percentages against the appropriate pay level/rate for the individual instructor.

For Example:

You have a PT Faculty substitute teaching a course that shows the following information on the Banner report SWRCRPA (see picture):

Lecture (Schedule Type E) = 24.00
Lab (Schedule Type A) = 36.00

From this information you can calculate the percentage of lecture and lab for the class:

Lecture = 24/60 = 40%
Lab = 36/60
= 60%

Next, look up the instructor in Banner form PWAPLVL and determine their Step.

If we use the example of an instructor who has attained Step 7, we can calculate the pay rate as follows:

What happens if, after I submit the Substitute EPAF, the employee works additional hours?

You then need to submit another EPAF.

What happens if my Substitute Pay EPAF is approved After the Biweekly Payroll cutoff date?

The BW Payroll cutoff date is the ‘Authorizations Due in HR date’. If you have an EPAF ‘pending’ approval and it is approved after the cutoff date, it will not be processed until the next pay period. Please make every effort to get them approved before the deadline.

I Can't see the Substitute Pay Options on the Dropdown List -- Why Not?

Each month after the HR Authorization Due Deadline, the option to submit SUB/SUBSL EPAFs will be shut off for a short period. This is so HR can process any existing EPAFS for the current biweekly pay period. Once they have completed their auditing for the current pay period, the option will be turned back on, with the payroll dates for the NEW biweekly pay period as defaults for the newly created SUB/SUBSL EPAFs.